Tropicália

Marcelo Machado's 2012 Brazilian documentary is about the Tropicália movement that emerged at the end of the sixties. The musicians brought electric guitar, pop and a logic of collage into traditional Brazilian music, and were met with hostility. The argument is that the movement was political. Under military government, formal freedom was treated as a direct threat; Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil were arrested and had to leave the country. The film is built entirely from archive. Television recordings, concert footage and news of the period are used; there is almost no new interview and the narrative proceeds in the period's own voice. Who it's for: those who like Brazilian music and sixties culture. Who it's not for: viewers new to the movement; the documentary does not explain the context in detail.